The Virtual Doctor Will See You Now: Expanding Broadband VR/AR Applications

18 Oct 2017

Duncan PotterSenior Vice President, Global Marketing at ARRIS

Virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) applications and technologies deliver much more than gaming. They can mix entertainment, long-distance learning, and preventive health care in a variety of combinations.

Imagine a world where VR/AR is used to create an immersive remote education experience by placing students in a VR/AR classroom with their professors and peers, allows people who are hindered by health or injuries to shop, visit the beach, or travel the world, and provides personalized in-home health maintenance such as alleviating symptoms of PTSD or depression, or distracting patients during painful procedures or recuperations. I'll also discuss ways in which sporting event owners and broadcasters can sell some of the best seats in the house, hundreds if not thousands of times, for VR at home viewing.

At NAB Show New York, I’ll be speaking about present and future real world applications, the speeds and feeds required to bring VR/AR across the web and to the home, and the opportunities for service providers to augment the elder care and preventative medicine industries. However, to do so, will require strategic investment in infrastructure, wireless and satellite technologies to support the amount of bandwidth, latency reduction, reliability, security, and more. Service providers can either take part of this next evolution of VR/AR, or lose business as other companies step in to fill the void.

While the dramatic rate of change for which these applications are expanding opens opportunities in entertainment, that’s but a small part of the bigger picture. I’ll be tackling these subjects on Thursday, Oct 19, at 3:45 pm in a FOCUS FWD Feature on the TECH Stage, “The Virtual Doctor Will See You Now: Expanding Broadband VR/AR Applications”.

The answer to the question above? Erin Martucci gave birth and is believed to be the first woman to use virtual reality (VR) for pain management during labor.